In 2018, Betty Drees, M.D., FACP, FACE, joined the Graduate School of the Stowers Institute for Medical Research as President. Launched in 2012, the Graduate School was fairly new, with around 40 predoctoral researchers, taught by faculty members who were investigators and scientists from the Stowers Institute. The Graduate School has a distinct role—education. However, the Graduate School and the Institute are inherently connected through faculty, facilities, and funding.

Drees is a physician specializing in diabetes, a researcher, a faculty member at the University of Missouri, Kansas City (UMKC), and former 13-year Dean of Medicine at UMKC. As the new president, Drees was tasked to provide guidance, expertise, and experience in spearheading the Stowers Graduate School and carrying it through the external validation process of accreditation while maintaining the integrity and mission of its original design.

As she prepared to step down as President, an interview with Drees shed light on her accomplishments, leadership, and vision for upholding the distinguishing features that make the Stowers Graduate School truly unique.

Earning accreditation for the Graduate School was a significant goal and feat—what were some of the challenges and highlights?

Prior to accreditation, the Graduate School was certified by the Missouri Department of Higher Education to operate as a higher education institution, a certification process that must be reapplied for annually.

Accreditation assures a quality of education that requires strict criteria to be met, including institutional structures and policies, curriculum, and how our students are selected and evaluated. The process to become fully accredited took around six years, which is very fast compared to the average timeline. The evaluation covered everything from our articles of incorporation, bylaws, and policies, to the formal definition of the Graduate School’s relationship with the Institute. As the education entity, we are separate but very much connected. Our mission to prepare future scientists through education is completely aligned with the vision and mission of the Institute—to make a significant contribution to humanity through biomedical research—which needs the next generation of scientific leaders. A large portion of this process was done during the COVID-19 pandemic, which demonstrates the dedication of the students, the commitment of the faculty, and the support of the administration.

Initial accreditation was awarded to the Graduate School in November 2021 by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), a regional accreditation agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For any education institution, how you assess your program, how you use that assessment to continually improve, and how you use that to align your resources is the biggest challenge. Because final accreditation cannot be awarded until the program has generated graduates, you need to work diligently until you have a group of graduates—the proof of a successful education program—that shows you have succeeded.